Personal Honor

29:23 A man's pride will bring him low, but he who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor.
Proverbs 29:23 RSV


I saw this quote on today's Bible verse. Honor is a word we use in greater or lesser amount at different times and places. We go through seasons where it is not used at all. At other times it is used to the point of losing its meaning. In this election season we are hearing it again in a rising tide. Yet I am drawn to the question, What is Honor? Yesterday I was teaching the LeaDRSHIP section (an Acronym not a typo) section of the ROCK's volunteer training. One of the bullet points under H - Honor, was that a leader uses Honor as a motivation for moral action. The best way I could explain this was to say a person of honor does the right thing because it is the right thing and for no other reason.

Another definition of honor is the one used here of honor being given to a person. A Champion is honored with a prize. A writer is honored with an award. Some people live life seeking honor. Their pride drives them to seek those recognitions which will lift their own name a little higher than others. Yet this proverb tells us that a man of lowly spirit, humble spirit, will obtain honor. You may not see it in this life. Yet it has been my experience that the most honorable people I have ever met are the ones who you would never know of their accomplishments. They talk little of them.

The third definition of Honor that I am familiar with is the one I lived under at VMI and still try to live today. Our Honor Code was: "A Cadet does not lie, cheat, steal, or tolerate those who do." Simple. One sentence. Yet profound and challenging to uphold. When a cadet broke faith with the Honor Code he was given its one penalty. Dismissal. He was no longer a cadet. When his dismissal was announced at the 3 AM drum-out ceremony these words were spoken, "He has placed personal gain above personal honor."

This speaks to the Proverb as well. When a person places a higher priority on what he or she may personally gain, over what is right, that person has sacrificed his or her honor.

How do you, your friends, your candidates, those you lead, and those you follow, stack up in the area of personal honor? Will you receive your honor from God as a humble person, or will you seek your honors now at the expense of future honor that matters?

In Christ and on the Shepherd's Path,

Mark